119-s600

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 600 Introduced in Senate

    (IS) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 S. 600

 To enhance pre- and post-adoption support services, and for other 
 purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

 February 13, 2025

 Ms. Klobuchar (for herself and Mr. Cramer) introduced the following 
 bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To enhance pre- and post-adoption support services, and for other 
 purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Supporting Adopted Children and 
Families Act''.

SEC. 2. ADOPTION SUPPORT SERVICES.

    (a) Ensuring the Well-Being of Adopted Children and Their Adoptive 
Families.--

Section 421 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621) is 
amended--

    (1) in paragraph

    (4) , by striking ``and'' at the end;

    (2) by redesignating paragraph

    (5) as paragraph

    (6) ; and

    (3) by inserting after paragraph

    (4) the following new 
 paragraph:
 ``

    (5) ensuring the well-being of adopted children and their 
 adoptive families and promoting efforts to prevent such 
 children from entering the foster care system through the 
 provision of pre- and post-adoption support services; and''.

    (b) Pre- and Post-Adoption Support Services.--Paragraph

    (8) of 

section 431

    (a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 629a

    (a) ) is amended to read as 
follows:
 ``

    (8) Adoption promotion and support services.--
 ``
        (A) In general.--The term `adoption promotion and 
 support services' means services and activities 
 designed to encourage more adoptions out of the foster 
 care system and support domestic adoptions and 
 adoptions from other countries, consistent with 
 promoting the best interests of adopted children and 
 their adoptive families. Such services and activities 
 may include pre- and post-adoption support services, as 
 described in subparagraph
        (B) , that are designed to 
 support adopted children and their adoptive families.
 ``
        (B) Pre- and post-adoption support services.--The 
 term `pre- and post-adoption support services' means 
 the following:
 ``
            (i) Pre-adoption support services, which 
 may include--
 ``
            (I) direct services, including 
 training, educational support, 
 counseling, and other services for 
 adoptive parents and families that 
 address caregiver interests and 
 concerns regarding common behavioral 
 issues, such as--
 ``

    (aa) issues relating to 
 emotional, behavioral, or 
 developmental health needs;
 ``

    (bb) issues relating to 
 attachment, identity, 
 abandonment, cultural 
 differences, grief, loss, and 
 trauma; and
 ``
            (cc) issues resulting 
 from birth defects due to fetal 
 alcohol syndrome or any other 
 substance abuse-related 
 developmental disorder;
 ``
            (II) the provision of educational 
 resources for adoptive parents 
 regarding the geographic, ethnic, and 
 cultural background of the adopted 
 child;
 ``
            (III) peer-to-peer mentoring and 
 support groups that permit a newly 
 adoptive parent to communicate and 
 learn from more experienced adoptive 
 parents, including programs that 
 enhance communication between adoptive 
 parents with children of similar 
 geographic, ethnic, or cultural 
 backgrounds; and
 ``
            (IV) the provision of 
 informational resources for adoptive 
 parents, including--
 ``

    (aa) resources available 
 through Federal and State 
 agencies, including information 
 regarding benefits for children 
 with a medical condition or a 
 physical, mental, or emotional 
 disability;
 ``

    (bb) newsletters, 
 websites, and other 
 informational resources 
 regarding adoption-related 
 services;
 ``
            (cc) the establishment of 
 lending libraries containing 
 information and resources for 
 adoptive parents; and
 ``
            (dd) conferences, 
 discussion groups, and seminars 
 that are available to adoptive 
 parents and other relevant 
 stakeholders.
 ``
            (ii) Post-adoption support services, 
 which may include--
 ``
            (I) continued provision to 
 adoptive parents of pre-adoption 
 support services described in clause
            (i) ;
 ``
            (II) the provision of accessible 
 and reliable respite services for 
 adoptive parents;
 ``
            (III) direct services and 
 counseling for adopted children, 
 including, as appropriate--
 ``

    (aa) support services for 
 an adopted child with 
 emotional, behavioral, or 
 developmental health needs;
 ``

    (bb) support services 
 that address issues relating to 
 attachment, identity, 
 abandonment, cultural 
 differences, grief, and loss; 
 and
 ``
            (cc) treatment services 
 that are specialized for 
 adopted children, including 
 psychiatric residential 
 services, outpatient mental 
 health services, social skills 
 training, intensive in-home 
 supervision services, 
 recreational therapy, suicide 
 prevention, and substance abuse 
 treatment;
 ``
            (IV) peer-to-peer mentoring and 
 support groups that allow adopted 
 children to communicate and socialize 
 with other adopted children, including 
 programs that provide for communication 
 between adopted children from similar 
 geographic, ethnic, or cultural 
 backgrounds; and
 ``
            (V) crisis and family 
 preservation services, including crisis 
 counseling and a 24-hour emergency 
 hotline for adoptive parents.''.

SEC. 3. FUNDING FOR ADOPTION PROMOTION AND SUPPORT SERVICES.

 Paragraph

    (8) of 

section 473

    (a) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 673

    (a) ) is amended to read as follows:
 ``

    (8) With respect to the amount of savings (if any) in 
 State expenditures under this part resulting from the 
 application of paragraph

    (2)
        (A)
            (ii) to all applicable children 
 for a fiscal year, a State shall--
 ``
        (A) spend a significant portion of such amount to 
 provide pre- and post-adoption support services (as 
 defined in 

section 431

    (a)

    (8)
        (B) );
 ``
        (B) spend the remainder of such amount to provide 
 to children or families any other services that may be 
 provided under this part or part B; and
 ``
            (C) on an annual basis, submit to the Secretary a 
 report that provides a detailed account of any services 
 that were funded pursuant to this paragraph.''.

SEC. 4. FEDERAL GRANT PROGRAM FOR POST-ADOPTION AND POST-LEGAL 
 GUARDIANSHIP MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES.

    (a) Funding.--

Section 436

    (b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
629f

    (b) ) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
 ``

    (5) Post-adoption and post-legal guardianship mental 
 health services.--The Secretary shall reserve $20,000,000 for 
 grants under 

section 437

    (h) .''.

    (b) Grant Program.--

Section 437 of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 629g) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection:
 ``

    (h) Post-Adoption and Post-Legal Guardianship Mental Health 
Service Programs.--
 ``

    (1) In general.--From the amounts reserved for each of 
 fiscal years 2026 through 2029 under 

section 436

    (b)

    (6) , the 
 Secretary shall award grants or cooperative agreements under 
 this subsection to eligible entities to--
 ``
        (A) develop and implement statewide or tribal 
 post-adoption and post-legal guardianship mental health 
 service programs for all children who are adopted or 
 placed in legal guardianship and their families;
 ``
        (B) support public organizations and private 
 nonprofit organizations actively involved in statewide 
 or tribal post-adoption and post-legal guardianship 
 mental health service programs;
 ``
            (C) collect and analyze data on State-sponsored 
 statewide or tribal post-adoption and post-legal 
 guardianship mental health service programs that can be 
 used to monitor the effectiveness of such services and 
 for research, technical assistance, and policy 
 development;
 ``
            (D) develop and provide adoption and legal 
 guardianship competent educational and training 
 opportunities concerning the mental health needs of 
 children who are adopted or placed in legal 
 guardianship, and their families, for use by teachers, 
 social workers, and other community mental health 
 service providers;
 ``
        (E) develop and provide materials for potential 
 adoptive parents and legal guardians, both for children 
 who already reside in the United States at the time of 
 adoption or placement in legal guardianship and for 
 those who at such time reside in other countries, 
 describing the possible need for post-adoption and 
 post-legal guardianship mental health services and 
 available resources;
 ``
        (F) develop and provide respite care services for 
 adoptive and legal guardian families; and
 ``
        (G) support research on, and development of, 
 promising practices (as defined in 

section 471

    (e)

    (4)
            (C) 
            (iii) ) for post-adoption and post-legal 
 guardianship mental health services.
 ``

    (2) Eligible entity defined.--
 ``
        (A) In general.--In this subsection, the term 
 `eligible entity' means--
 ``
            (i) a State;
 ``
            (ii) a public organization or private 
 nonprofit organization designated by a State to 
 develop or direct the State-sponsored statewide 
 post-adoption and post-legal guardianship 
 mental health service program under a grant 
 under this subsection; and
 ``
            (iii) a federally recognized Indian tribe 
 or tribal organization (as defined in the 
 Indian Self-Determination and Education 
 Assistance Act) or an urban Indian organization 
 (as defined in the Indian Health Care 
 Improvement Act) that is actively involved in 
 the development and continuation of a post-
 adoption and post-legal guardianship mental 
 health service program.
 ``
        (B) Limitation.--In carrying out this subsection, 
 the Secretary shall ensure that each State is awarded 
 only 1 grant or cooperative agreement under this 
 subsection. For purposes of the preceding sentence, a 
 State shall be considered to have been awarded a grant 
 or cooperative agreement if the eligible entity 
 involved is the State or an entity designated by the 
 State under subparagraph
        (A)
            (ii) . Nothing in this 
 subparagraph shall be construed to apply to entities 
 described in subparagraph
        (A)
            (iii) .
 ``

    (3) Preference.--In providing assistance under a grant or 
 cooperative agreement under this subsection, the Secretary 
 shall give preference to--
 ``
        (A) eligible entities that have demonstrated 
 success in increasing the level of adoption and legal 
 guardianship competency among mental health providers, 
 adoption and legal guardianship lawyers, social 
 workers, case workers, adoptive parents, and legal 
 guardians; and
 ``
        (B) eligible entities that plan to partner with 
 their State mental health agency in carrying out the 
 activities for which the grant or cooperative agreement 
 is made.
 ``

    (4) Requirement for direct services.--Not less than 85 
 percent of funds received under a grant or cooperative 
 agreement under this subsection shall be used to provide direct 
 services, of which not less than 5 percent shall be used for 
 activities authorized under paragraph

    (1)
            (C) .
 ``

    (5) Coordination and collaboration.--
 ``
        (A) In general.--In carrying out this subsection, 
 the Secretary shall collaborate with relevant Federal 
 agencies and adoption and legal guardianship-related 
 working groups to promote interaction between domestic 
 foster care agencies and private adoption agencies in 
 other countries.
 ``
        (B) Consultation.--In carrying out this 
 subsection, the Secretary shall consult with--
 ``
            (i) State and social service agencies 
 engaged in the placement of children for 
 adoption, domestically or from other countries;
 ``
            (ii) local and national organizations 
 that serve foster and adopted youth and youth 
 placed in legal guardianship;
 ``
            (iii) health and education specialists 
 who focus on adoption, legal guardianship, and 
 foster care medicine;
 ``
            (iv) youth who have been in foster care, 
 adopted, or in legal guardianship, domestically 
 or from other countries, including youth who 
 have experienced adoption or guardianship 
 disruptions or dissolutions;
 ``
            (v) families and friends of youth who 
 have been in foster care, adopted, or in legal 
 guardianship, domestically or from other 
 countries, including foster and adoptive 
 parents and legal guardians; and
 ``
            (vi) qualified professionals who possess 
 the specialized knowledge, skills, experience, 
 and relevant attributes needed to serve 
 children who are adopted or placed in legal 
 guardianship and their families.
 ``
            (C) Policy development.--In carrying out this 
 subsection, the Secretary shall--
 ``
            (i) coordinate and collaborate on policy 
 development with relevant Department of Health 
 and Human Services agencies and adoption and 
 legal guardianship-related working groups; and
 ``
            (ii) consult on policy development at the 
 Federal level with those in the private sector 
 engaged in the recruitment of foster and 
 adoptive parents and legal guardians, the 
 placement of children in foster care, for 
 adoption, and in legal guardianship, and the 
 provision of post-adoption and post-legal 
 guardianship services.
 ``

    (6) Evaluation and report.--
 ``
        (A) Evaluations by eligible entities.--Not later 
 than 18 months after receipt of a grant or cooperative 
 agreement under this subsection, an eligible entity 
 shall submit to the Secretary the results of an 
 evaluation to be conducted by the entity concerning the 
 effectiveness of the activities carried out under the 
 grant or agreement.
 ``
        (B) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the 
 date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary 
 shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress 
 a report concerning the results of--
 ``
            (i) the evaluations conducted under 
 subparagraph
        (A) ; and
 ``
            (ii) an evaluation conducted by the 
 Secretary to analyze the effectiveness and 
 efficacy of the activities conducted with 
 grants, collaborations, and consultations under 
 this subsection.
 ``

    (7) Additional 

=== definitions. ===
-In this subsection:
 ``
        (A) Adopted child.--The term `adopted child' 
 means an individual who is under 21 years of age and 
 was adopted from foster care or placed in legal 
 guardianship through a private placement agency, or 
 from another country.
 ``
        (B) Adoption and legal guardianship competency.--
 The term `adoption and legal guardianship competency' 
 means an understanding of--
 ``
            (i) the nature of adoption and legal 
 guardianship as a form of family formation and 
 the different types of adoption and legal 
 guardianship;
 ``
            (ii) relevant emotional and physical 
 issues involved in the adoption or legal 
 guardianship process, including issues relating 
 to separation, loss, attachment, abuse, trauma, 
 and neglect;
 ``
            (iii) common developmental challenges 
 associated with adoption and legal 
 guardianship;
 ``
            (iv) the characteristics and skills that 
 allow for successful adoptive and legal 
 guardianship families;
 ``
            (v) proper sensitivity with respect to 
 the different geographic, ethnic, or cultural 
 backgrounds of children who are adopted or 
 placed in legal guardianship and their 
 families; and
 ``
            (vi) the necessary skills for effectively 
 advocating on behalf of birth and adoptive and 
 legal guardian families.
 ``
            (C) Post-adoption and post-legal guardianship 
 mental health services.--The term `post-adoption and 
 post-legal guardianship mental health services' 
 includes--
 ``
            (i) adoption and legal guardianship 
 competent mental health direct services, 
 including training, educational support, 
 counseling, and other services for adoptive and 
 legal guardian parents and families that 
 address caregiver interests and concerns 
 regarding child behavioral issues that are 
 common among children who are adopted, placed 
 in legal guardianship, or placed in foster 
 care, including, as appropriate--
 ``
            (I) caring for a child who is 
 adopted or placed in legal guardianship 
 and has emotional, behavioral, or 
 developmental health needs; and
 ``
            (II) providing for the emotional 
 needs of a child who is adopted or 
 placed in legal guardianship, including 
 issues relating to attachment, 
 identity, abandonment, cultural 
 differences, grief, loss, and trauma;
 ``
            (ii) peer-to-peer mentoring and support 
 groups that permit a newly adoptive parent or 
 legal guardian to communicate and learn from 
 more experienced adoptive parents or legal 
 guardians;
 ``
            (iii) the provision of informational 
 resources and available services for adoptive 
 parents or legal guardians;
 ``
            (iv) direct services, including 
 counseling, peer-to-peer mentoring and support 
 groups, and other services for children who are 
 adopted or placed in legal guardianship that 
 address common behavioral and adjustment 
 issues, including, as appropriate--
 ``
            (I) support services for a child 
 who is adopted or placed in legal 
 guardianship with emotional, 
 behavioral, or developmental health 
 needs;
 ``
            (II) support services that 
 address the emotional needs of a child 
 who is adopted or placed in legal 
 guardianship, including issues relating 
 to attachment, identity, abandonment, 
 cultural differences, grief, loss, and 
 trauma; and
 ``
            (III) treatment services that are 
 specialized for children who are 
 adopted or placed in legal 
 guardianship, including psychiatric 
 residential services, outpatient mental 
 health services, social skills 
 training, intensive in-home supervision 
 services, recreational therapy, suicide 
 prevention, and substance abuse 
 treatment;
 ``
            (v) peer-to-peer mentoring and support 
 groups that allow children who are adopted or 
 placed in legal guardianship communicate and 
 socialize with other such children; and
 ``
            (vi) crisis intervention and family 
 preservation services.''.

SEC. 5. DATA COLLECTION ON ADOPTION DISRUPTION AND DISSOLUTION.

    (a) In General.--

Section 479 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
679) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
 ``

    (e)

    (1) Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of 
this subsection, the Secretary shall, as part of the data collection 
system established under this section, promulgate final regulations 
providing for the collection and analysis of information regarding 
children who enter into State custody as a result of the disruption of 
a placement for adoption or the dissolution of an adoption, which shall 
require States to collect and report--
 ``
        (A) information on children who are adopted within the 
 United States or from other countries and who enter into State 
 custody as a result of the disruption of a placement for 
 adoption or the dissolution of an adoption, including--
 ``
            (i) the number of children who enter into State 
 custody as a result of--
 ``
            (I) the disruption of placement for 
 adoption; or
 ``
            (II) the dissolution of an adoption; and
 ``
            (ii) for each child identified under clause
            (i) --
 ``
            (I) as applicable, the country of birth 
 for any child who was not born in the United 
 States;
 ``
            (II) the length of the adoption placement 
 prior to disruption or dissolution;
 ``
            (III) the age of the child at the time of 
 the disruption or dissolution;
 ``
            (IV) the reason for the disruption or 
 dissolution; and
 ``
            (V) the agencies who handled the 
 placement for adoption; and
 ``
        (B) such other information as determined appropriate by 
 the Secretary.
 ``

    (2) The information described in paragraph

    (1) shall be used--
 ``
        (A) to consolidate and expand the collection of 
 information on adoption disruption and dissolution;
 ``
        (B) to improve research and data collection systems in 
 order to more accurately determine and measure the rates, 
 outcomes, and causes of adoption disruption and dissolution;
 ``
            (C) to identify pre- and post-adoption support services 
 (including services described in 

section 431

    (a)

    (8)
        (B) (as 
 amended by the Supporting Adopted Children and Families Act)) 
 that result in lower rates of disruption and dissolution of 
 adoptions;
 ``
            (D) to develop an understanding of the relationship 
 between the rate of incidence of adoption disruptions and 
 dissolutions and the support services that are provided to 
 adoptive families in order to identify and develop effective 
 evidence-based strategies, programs, and support services that 
 help to prevent adoption disruption and dissolution; and
 ``
        (E) to develop and enhance training and educational 
 services regarding strategies for prevention of adoption 
 disruption and dissolution.
 ``

    (3)
        (A) Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of 
this subsection, the Secretary shall, subject to subparagraph
        (B) , 
establish an advisory committee to study methods to effectively collect 
data regarding disruption and dissolution of adoptions that are not 
included in the data collection system established under this section, 
including--
 ``
            (i) data on children whose adoptions are disrupted or 
 dissolved but do not enter into State custody as a result of 
 such disruption or dissolution;
 ``
            (ii) data on adoption displacements, whereby an adopted 
 child is temporarily placed out of the home of an adoptive 
 parent in order to receive medical, mental health, behavioral, 
 or other forms of treatment; and
 ``
            (iii) such other data as determined appropriate by the 
 Secretary.
 ``
        (B) The membership and organization of the advisory committee 
described in subparagraph
        (A) shall be determined by the Secretary and 
shall include--
 ``
            (i) State and child welfare agencies that are engaged in 
 the placement of children for adoption domestically or from 
 other countries;
 ``
            (ii) local and national organizations that serve adopted 
 children and children in foster care; and
 ``
            (iii) members of State and local judiciary and court 
 staff.
 ``
            (C) Not later than 12 months after establishment of the advisory 
committee described in subparagraph
        (A) , the Secretary shall submit to 
the appropriate committees of Congress a report containing 
recommendations of the advisory committee for improvement of the data 
collection system established under this section.''.

    (b) Annual Report.--

Section 479A

    (a) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 679b

    (a) ) is amended--

    (1) in paragraph

    (6)
            (C) , by striking ``and'' after the 
 semicolon;

    (2) in paragraph

    (7) , by striking the period at the end and 
 inserting ``; and''; and

    (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
 ``

    (8) include in the report submitted pursuant to paragraph

    (5) for fiscal year 2026 or any succeeding fiscal year, 
 national and State-by-State data on the numbers and rates of 
 disruptions and dissolutions of adoptions, as collected 
 pursuant to 

section 479

    (e)

    (1) .''.

SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsections

    (b) ,
            (c) , and
            (d) , the amendments made by this Act shall take effect on October 1, 
2025, and shall apply to payments under parts B and E of title IV of 
the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq., 670 et seq.) for 
calendar quarters beginning on or after such date.

    (b) Delay Permitted if State Legislation Required.--If the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services determines that State 
legislation (other than legislation appropriating funds) is required in 
order for a State plan developed pursuant to part B or E of title IV of 
the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq., 670 et seq.) to meet 
the additional requirements imposed by the amendments made by this Act, 
the plan shall not be regarded as failing to meet any of the additional 
requirements before the 1st day of the 1st calendar quarter beginning 
after the first regular session of the State legislature that begins 
after the date of the enactment of this Act. For purposes of the 
preceding sentence, if the State has a 2-year legislative session, each 
year of the session is deemed to be a separate regular session of the 
State legislature.
            (c) Application to Programs Operated by Indian Tribal 
Organizations.--In the case of an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or 
tribal consortium that the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
determines requires time to take action necessary to comply with the 
additional requirements imposed by the amendments made by this Act 
(whether the tribe, organization, or tribal consortium has a plan under 

section 479B of the Social Security Act or a cooperative agreement or 
contract entered into with a State), the Secretary shall provide the 
tribe, organization, or tribal consortium with such additional time as 
the Secretary determines is necessary for the tribe, organization, or 
tribal consortium to take the action to comply with the additional 
requirements before being regarded as failing to comply with the 
requirements.
            (d) Data Collection on Adoption Disruption and Dissolution.--The 
amendments made by 

section 5 shall take effect on the date of enactment 
of this Act.
 <all>